Ocean City, Maryland has a history of devastating storms including a 1933 hurricane and the virtual leveling of the city by a 1962 nor'easter. Almost thirty years later, in 1991, another series of brutal nor'easters took their toll. After that storm however, the Army Corps of Engineers, along with the T.L. James Company and Ruppert Landscape, decided to incorporate a relatively new and emerging method of maintaining shoreline stability . . . Dune Restoration.

Bruce Ware of the Army Corps of Engineers explains that restoration of the dunes is an environmentally-aesthetic protection feature. "Once established, the new dunes (90' wide and 6-7' above the beach berm elevation) will provide a barrier against wave and high water damage and also provide a reservoir of beach sand during severe storms. Dune fencing and planting greatly assists in the stabilization of the dune line and captures windblown sand."

Ruppert Landscape oversaw the repair of decks, stairs, handrails and access ramps to the beach, the installation of 22 miles of sand fence, and the installation of 210 vehicle and pedestrian crossovers from the street-ends over the dune to the beach. According to Rupperts' Ken Hochkeppel, "the finished planting was to include over three million pieces of beach grasses and fertilizing of the entire area".

Hochkeppel sees this type of restoration as an ongoing trend. "This is now one of the methods accepted to protect shorelines. Although the dunes may be battered again and again, they take the brunt of a storm and save millions of dollars in damage." And that's just what happened!

A major storm hit the coast in mid-December of 1992, before the project was complete. Although a third of the plant material was yet to be installed, and in spite of the fact that almost one third of the seven-mile-long project was damaged by the storm, the dune restoration still served its purpose.

By establishing a catch zone for sand and debris, the elevated dunes keep the water from reaching the business and population centers. Donna Meiras, a spokesperson from the Army Corp of Engineers confirmed that "while the storm did damage much of the project, it served its purpose by protecting the oceanfront and Ocean City."

So . . . they have again begun to rebuild. Will another storm hit the coast? Most likely it will, and with devastating power. Yet Ocean City can rest just a little bit easier thanks to the protection provided by sand dunes. LASN